So, like I said, my main job here is to have conversations with Spaniards so they can practice their English speaking/ listening skills and you might be wondering how that goes.
Eventually, and gratefully, most of the conversations become more personal or in depth. I mean, how many times can a student describe his job or hometown? On my walks and in the small groups ( the two on twos, for example) we've covered some pretty broad topics including raising children, politics (especially American), the economy (especially in Spain- and yeah, it's not doing well), casual sex and not so casual sex, religion, gender differences, same-sex marriage, immigration, current events (we don't have time to hear much news though), climate change, and piracy (both copyright type and like in Somalia). You know, a little beyond your typical elevator or water cooler chitchat.
Within these subjects we check to see which opinions might be personal or unusual and whether there are real cultural differences. The Anglo volunteers are from Australia, Canada, England, Scotland, New Zealand, Wales, and the U.S. so along with the Spaniards we've got a mini League of Nations thing going on. Makes for great conversation, especially whenever anyone mentions soccer or the European National Song Contest, which was recently won by a drag queen with a beard. (I never heard of this competition before! Have you? Check it out here.)
I hope I'm not making this sound too heavy. Most of the time, my face hurts from smiling and laughing!
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